1. The Union army fought very poorly for the first year of the war, experiencing defeats at the First Battle of Bull Run and every other major battle up to the Second Battle of Bull Run. Despite the string of defeats, the Union Army was not beaten but was dispirited. Morale was very low. Most of the army withdrew to positions north of the Potomac River to regroup. Confederate President Jefferson Davis wanted to end the war, which he believed he could do in one of several ways: Defeat the main force of the Union army, take Washington, DC, topple the Lincoln government, or gain recognition from major European powers. Davis ordered General Lee to cross the Potomac and put pressure on Washington. As the Confederate Army drew near to the capital, the Union army was quickly organized to engage and the two armies met near Sharpsburg, Maryland, along Antietam Creek.
2.At the US Civil War Battle of Antietam, is was the tactics not the strategies that were employed. Confederate General Robert E. Lee chose his best tactic based on the fact his army was vastly outnumbered. His tactic was to maintain a defensive posture causing Union General McClellan no choice but to use offensive if he wanted to send Lee and his army back to Virginia. So, classical defensive and offensive battle tactics were used.
3. The southern army was blocked.
